3 in 30 Challenge February Goals

Good Morning!! I'm so excited to be participating in the 3 in 3o challenge started by Meghan & Ashley!! I just found out about it in January so February is my first official month.

So without any further hesitation...here it goes!!!

1. Develop a consistent morning routine to start my days on tuesday-friday.

This will include but is not limited to

a. Joining the Maximize your Morning Challenge @ inspired to action

-I will use the #hellomorning hashtag on twitter to continue to grow relationships with the gals there and have accountability

b. Continue through month 2 of Bible in 90 days @ mom's toolbox (reading 7 days/week)

-I will use the #B90Days hashtag on twitter

c. Begin praying specifically for my boys using Warrior Prayers & MOB society

-I will use the #WarriorPrayers hashtag on twitter

(the am routine goal is specific to tuesday-friday because of my work schedule but I will still probably check in on twitter the other days)

2. I will continue to declutter my house in preparation for Zone Cleaning

Specific projects relating to this are:

Cleaning out pantry

Organizing the boys clothes

Putting size appropriate clothes in Cole's drawers

Cleaning master bedroom

Creating a landing zone near computer

3. Track all of my weight watcher intake and activity points for 2/11

I'm hoping by tracking points and focusing on the good health guidelines I'll be stepping closer to my ultimate goal of 60 pound loss.

I will continue to blog about my progress at weigh ins for my own accountability.

I'm trying to give myself specific SMART goals to start out. I want to be intentional with my time hoping to fight the winter blahs (aka depression/anxiety) that seem to be creeping in.

I'm very excited about this challenge. I've done well with my B90days and have honestly stuck with it more than I've stuck with anything. I'm finding that the community I'm interacting with on twitter is helping immensely. (again, I'm @MommaKristi)

I'm hoping by blogging all of this I'm providing myself with accountability, honesty and transparancy. I find it easy to often hide behind my shell and avoid my real issues.

March's theme will most likely involve the boys much more. I feel like I need to get myself together before I focus too much more on adding extra activities for them right now. I also find that with my am personal worship time and routine (which I've been attempting regularly since starting B90) I am more present during the day with them...which makes for a much better day!!

If you're visiting from twitter or 3 in 30- please leave a message so I can come visit you in return!!!

Totally Random Thursday

Meghan over @ Tucker's take Tennessee has started a Totally Random Thursday Linky that I thought would be a fun way to share and meet some more people in bloggy world!!! So here's this week's Cup O' Randomness....

1. I had 3 babies between October 3, 2007 and October 7, 2010
(You can see more of them over here).

2. As such a girly girl myself, I never dreamed of have 3 boys and
being a card carrying member of the MOB Society.

3. I still work full time as a pharmacist at a local hospital on the weekends (gotta pay for that college somehow).

4. I dream of being able to yell I'M DEBT FREE on the Dave Ramsey Show.

5. I'm craving being part of a community of christian women and connecting with other like-minded moms. I'm starting to find my groove through many online communities and via twitter (I'm @MommaKristi...find me)

To find more randomness, check out Meghan's blog. I think this is a Linky I can acctually be consistent with (b/c I love me some random thoughts!!!).

B90X update and other various things......

I’ve made it through another week of B90X (via www.momstoolbox.com/blog) and I can happily say I’ve been reading the Bible for 22 days (I already have Monday’s reading done!!). I had a really tough week emotionally and it’s tough to exactly put my finger on it…other than I’m sick and tired of everyone in my house being sick and tired!!

The reading was slightly monotonous in some places and very very fast paced in others (I mean we plowed through Ruth!!). We’re currently in 2 Samuel. Thanks to Jessica (my B90 Mentor- she blogs @ http://music-girl20.blogspot.com ) I’m reminded that I need to be more attentive in my reading. While I’m reading to “just get through it” I need to pay attention to what I’m reading!!! I’m so thankful for this chance and I can honestly say I look forward to my daily quiet time (or “personal worship” a phrase I found from Katie http://www.donotdepart.com/2011/01/toolbox-tuesday-evaluate-your-personal.html on twitter). I can see that I’m developing a discipline and hunger for the Word. I hope I’m creating a habit that I can keep up with even after these 90 days…even if it’s a shorter time than the current hour & 15 minute daily commitment.

In additional family notes….today is my wonderful husband’s birthday. He is truly wonderful (I know everyone says that about their hubby’s)…but I really mean it. He’s always embracing whatever new idea I have an helping me out so I can achieve my goals (like B90X). I notice I’ve really had to sacrifice a lot of time to this reading plan- I often run to the bedroom after the boys are in bed so I can catch up or get ahead in reading without distraction. Our DVR is very full…we are going to have to take some time to catch up on our beloved shows (maybe as part of his birthday “celebration” tonight). Anyway- I want to tell him how much I love him and how thankful I am for him in my life. Happy Birthday Jas!!!

We’re still all sick in our house which I can tell is taking a toll on my emotions. It’s really hard to stay positive when I just feel like crap. I’m hoping we get through it. I’ve been really trying to stay accountable to my early mornings with some gals on Twitter (#hellomornings) and I’m excited that Kat has a new challenge coming up (more info @ http://inspiredtoaction.com/2011/01/my-favorite-morning-drink-recipe-and-some-upcoming-events/) .

I’m also taking a little time re-evaluating where I am and where I want to be. Through my new #B90days friends on Twitter I’m finding all kinds of neat things like 3 in 30 (http://www.thetuckerstaketennessee.com/2010/12/3-in-30-making-goals-reality-3-at-time.html) that I’m thinking about joining up with next month and the Relevant conference (www.therelevantconference.com) that I’m thinking about attending in October. I’m realizing that I’m not necessarily living up to my potential…and while I can “do it all” and “have it all” I need to be “giving it all”. I’ve mentioned before I tend to get excited about things and sometimes spread myself too thin…I don’t want to do that anymore. I want to figure out what really matters to me and my family and act on it. I hope that the blog can be more about me seeing what that is. We’ll see how the journey goes.

And I’ve had pretty much a horrible week food wise. Being sick hasn’t helped my WW endeavors…that’s for sure. I’m real nervous about weigh in tomorrow and I need to recommit to tracking every bite!!!

This is a hodge podge of thoughts again. But really, does any mom have clear precise thoughts…if so, don’t tell me…I don’t want to know!!!

Have a great week and if you’re stopping by from twitter or B90X please say hi so I can come visit you too!!!

Weight watchers week 6 and sick kids

I weighed in this am and lost another 2.6 lbs!! I've lost a total of 10.8lbs since starting 12/7!! I'm so excited and proud of myself. Overall I feel like I'm eating healthier and feel better overall!!

On another note- Max had croup last week and Jake was diagnosed with an ear infection. I'm praying that Cole stays healthy, although he has a well visit next week so we'll be 3 for 3 with pedi visits in 3 weeks!!!

B90 Week 3 Check in!!

I’m completely excited about the B90Days (www.momstoolbox.com) challenge I’m participating in!!! Today (Monday, the 17^th) is Day 15 and it is already complete!! We are into Deuteronomy and I’ve never read it this quickly before (or this much before). I’m loving reading it like a novel, just enjoying the story of the Israelites journey to the promised land.

I find myself getting frustrated with the Israelites stubbornness and stupidity, yet I see myself mimicking those actions so often!! Praise God we have Jesus and are not bound by the same laws they were.

Some of my favorite verses from this week are:

Numbers 6:24-27

“the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

Deuteronomy 30:11

“Now what I am commanding you is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach”

Deuteronomy 30:16

“For I command you today to love the Lord you God, to walk in obedience to him, and keep his commands, decrees, and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.”

Deuteronomy 31:6

“be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

I’ve been using a combination of www.youversion.com (app on my blackberry) and the official Bible in 90 days Bible (http://biblein90days.org/en/catalog/items/view.asp?catalogid=1). I love using the actual hardback Bible but sometimes the convenience of the blackberry wins out. Mom’s toolbox (www.momstoolbox.com) has some great resources (like a pdf reading schedule I have in my Bible and my planner to keep track.

I love the feeling I get of community from all the people reading right now. I’ve been checking in almost daily on Twitter using the #B90Days hashtag! (I’m @MommaKristi btw). I’m making some great “friends” and meeting some amazing people. We also have an accountability group and mentor that has been emailing us weekly and we started an e-discussion last week.

What I’ve found to work best for my reading is to read all the time!!! No joke. I’m always reading. I’ve been getting up early to exercise and read (although I didn’t exercise last week). I try to read some during naptime and I try to finish whatever day I’m on before bed. I’ve given up some tv shows in order to do this….and it’s paying off. Going into each weekend of work I’ve been a day ahead!! Work has been super busy and I haven’t had much down time at all so it’s important to get ahead during the week!!!

If you’re interested in the next B90 challenge check out Mom’s toolbox (http://www.momstoolbox.com/blog/bible-in-90-days-reading-schedule ).

If you’re visiting from the check-in or twitter- please leave a comment and say hi!!! Welcome to the blog!!!

Again, this is written via email from work so the links may be “wonky”. I apologize. Hopefully soon I’ll have an iPhone (yay Verizon) and I can do actual real blog posts from it!!!

Lots of stuff...

Well, not really lots, but I'm pretty excited!!! I weighed in a ww and I lost another 2 lbs!!! So it's a total of 7.2 lost since 12/7/10!!! Yippee!!!!

Also, I read day 2 & almost all of 3 in the B90 Challenge. I'm so excited about it!!! I'm afraid to fall behind and everyone at the #B90Days on twitter say to read whenever you have a chance....so that's what I'm doing!!! It's so intriguing to be re-reading these stories in Genesis...it's crazy what all they did to one another!!!

I even worked out this am!!! Yes!!! I know it's only January 4th and I don't want to burn out but I'm really trying to keep a positive mental attitude!!!

The big boys are playing with their tag readers with daddy. Coley just got a bath and is sitting in his high chair watching them. Life is soooo good!!!

B90 Day 1 done..and then some....

I'm so excited to be reading the Bible in 90 Days with the group from Mom's Toolbox. I've never done anything like this before and I'm praying that it's as life changing for me as it is for the other's I've seen blog about it!!!

I'm so afraid of getting behind. So I read day 1 and part of day 2. I'm amazed at the fact that I can read an entire novel in a few hours but 12 pages of the Bible seem so much harder!!! But it feels so good to be back in God's word with purpose!!!!

I'm trying to learn twitter and I hope to join the tweet up tonight following the #B90Days tag!!!

2011...I'm ready

Happy 2011!!! I can’t believe we’re starting a new year already!!! Where did 2010 go?? We had an amazing 2010 and I’ve been full of thinking here recently…this time of year does it to me….so I thought this would be a good place to maybe try to organize my thoughts.

I took just 6 weeks to recover with all 3 boys before going back to work, but for some reason this time it was a lot harder. I came to the realization this week that if I had taken the “normal 12 weeks” I’d still be off. It makes me kind of sad to think about…especially since I had to sleep all Christmas day. I’ve been back to work for a while now and still am trying to adjust to the night/day thing. I’ve been working nights for seven years but I’m not sure how much more I can take. The schedule is glorious for wanting to do things with the boys during the week and we love our “lazy days”. But going to church and doing things on weekends is really hard. It’s also hard to switch back and forth between days and nights. I’m having trouble sleeping and I can’t do a lot of the things I want to do…which brings me to what is coming up in 2011 for me!!!!

Last year I blogged about my one little word…Focus. I didn’t elaborate on it too much but this year I’m hoping to be more involved with it. Blogger/scrapbooker Ali Edwards coined the phrase one little word (http://aliedwards.com/2010/12/one-little-word-2011.html) and has led people on a journey since 2007. I decided on my word for this year to be BRAVE. On Ali’s blog she shows a photo that has scribbled “one little word can make a big impact on your life.”

As I pondered and prayed over my word for 2011 Nicole Nordeman’s song “Brave” kept popping into my head.
The chorus to the song goes like this:
So long status quo
I think I just let go
You make me want to be brave
The way it always was
Is no longer good enough
You make me want to be brave

Ever since having Jake, I seem to be paralyzed with fear….I’m afraid to go out with more than 1 kid. I’m not at all as strong as I used to be (I feel like I used to be pretty independent). Well, as I’m taking on new challenges this year, I know I’ll need to be BRAVE. I done with just merely surviving. I want to succeed at life. I want to be bold and grow in my faith. I want to be an excellent mother. I want to be healthy!!!

A big scary goal I’ve bitten off for the beginning of this year is to read the Bible in 90 days (www.biblein90days.org) !!!! I read about it from a few bloggers: Jolanthe (www.noordinarymomentsblog.com) Kelleigh (http://kelleighratzlaff.com) last fall and I wanted to do it so bad, but I knew I was due with Cole in the middle of it and I was afraid I’d fail. I’ve been praying about it and I’ve committed to it and we start January 3rd!!!! I’ll be reading with a group of readers from Mom’s Toolbox (www.momstoolbox.com/blog) and hopefully blogging some about this journey here. However, my main focus is to do the reading!! I encourage you to check it out if you’re interested!!! I got the 90 day Bible for Christmas and I also downloaded the kindle version on my iPod touch. I’m praying so hard that I can complete this!!! However, I know my spiritual life needs a boost. To be honest it’s been really hard to get to church over the last year. With the pregnancy fatigue and the boys seeming to always having colds (even right now they’re snotty) it’s really hard to get there. And I know my faith life has taken a back seat. I’m ready to put Jesus back in the driver seat. I know all areas of my life are affected by my faith and as that strengthens I hope all the other areas are strengthened as well.

Which leads me to my next challenge….I alluded to it a few weeks ago. I woke up on the day Cole turned 2 months old and decided it was time to lose weight. I had been noticing on another scrapbooker’s blog her desire to get healthy over 2010. It was a simple concept, move more, eat less. She had started on Weight watchers and then tried to do it on her own before returning to ww at the end of the year. That morning I had read her blog and she had been talking about coming back to ww and starting the new program (points+). I went that morning and I’m loving it!!! I love the new points+ program and have lost weight on it!! I continue to be inspired by Cathy and am using some of her ideas to track my own journey. She summarized her 2010 here (http://cathyzielske.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/12/a-year-of-moving-more-and-eating-less-in-scrapbook-pages.html) and I hope I can have her kind of success in 2011. It’s hard to be healthy. Its expensive, it takes planning and takes time. I’ll admit every Tuesday am I’m afraid when I step on that scale, fearing that I’ve slipped up or not tracked right. But I have to be brave and trust myself and know that I can succeed.

Another song that has been on my mind is Britney Spear’s “Stronger” (I prefer Glee’s version) but its another source of encouragement for me. It goes along with the whole theme of Move More Eat Less (http://cathyzielske.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/12/move-more-eat-less-2011an-invitation-to-you.html) and is part of my minds “soundtrack” if you will. While my “moving more” hasn’t exactly kicked into gear it will. I know I’m strong enough and I deserve it!!!

We’re starting this week with the boys (www.the-e-kids.blogspot.com) doing some regular activities and creating a routine. Maybe it’s just the winter blahs but we’re all going stir crazy. The boys seem to be running laps around us. I think Max has been testing his limits with us and I honestly thinks (and Jason is actually the one who came up with it…) that he needs some one on one attention. I could use some routine and consistency in our days. I’ve been inspired by Carisa (www.1plus1plus1equals1.blogspot.com), Jolanthe from above but at (http://homeschoolcreations.blogspot.com) and Erica (www.confessionsofahomeschooler.blogspot.com) with some ideas for “home preschool” of sorts. I just want some time to focus on my boys, love on them, do crafts with them, and teach them. I’ll be using a combo of ideas from these amazing gals and others to focus on letters, numbers, colors and bible verses. I’ll be documenting that on their blog (and hopefully post more pictures of them there too!!!).

Overall, 2010 was a hard year. I got in a rut. I mentioned the paralyzing fear…I also got lazy. I got comfortable in my own bed (literally) and have blamed my laziness on anything I can…and while those things are legitimate (3 kids in 3 years, full time night shift, etc) it’s time to get my act together. Max is 3…3!!!! I feel like I’ve been napping these last 3 years and I want to remember the little things about this time instead of sleeping through it!! I read a quote on a mothering message board that said this, “the days are long but the years are short.” It’s so true. I find myself sometimes wishing the days would go by faster and I don’t want to do that anymore. Sure it’s tough having 3 young kids but other people have done it and survived!! I have a wonderful support system (hello…Jason is ah-mazing with the boys!!!). My family and inlaws are so helpful!!! I need to buck up and be BRAVE and face each day with the strength God has given me.

For a few months now I’ve been saying 2011 is the year of No Excuses….There is no reason I’m so tired, overweight and unmotivated. It’s time for things to change. It’s time for my house to be cleaned, our debt to be paid off, to get healthy, and to love life!!! Whew- that was a lot to type and thank you if you’re still reading. Mainly this is (like everything I type on this blog) for myself…for my own enjoyment….to record my own journey. It’s nice to look back and see patterns in my posting and remember what I’ve gone through. I often get very excited about my next new thing then end up letting my depression/anxiety/laziness take over and it’s done as quick as it starts. I hope to change that this year…and I hope journaling/blogging about it helps me get through it. If you’re joining me on the journey- please leave me a comment and we can share through this together.

I know it won’t be easy, but I’m ready. I’m BRAVE.

**I typed this from an email at work so the formatting is all wonky and the hyperlinks are old school & not hidden- if they don't work do it the old fashion way and cut & paste....sorry, I wanted to get this out of my mind and written down so I didn't want to wait until I had time to do it**